Tag Archives: Max Lucado

I’ve been reading Max Lucado’s new book Grace. A passage from Chapter 7, Coming Clean with God, has really stuck with me even though I’ve moved on to Chapter 9. In the back of my mind has been a “found” poem based on this passage. Then today I went to dVerse Poets Pub to see what the poetry prompt was for the day. The challenge was to write about growing up. I decided to connect the two because what better evidence of growing up is there than finally coming clean with God? The italicized portions are direct quotes from Grace, page 85.

As My Spirit Grows

Childhood, young adulthood
A time when wild oats are sown
Rules are broken, trouble is found
Either to get into or be the victim of

Once again I haven’t had time to really think about what to do for My Tuesday Three for today, and so I’m resorting to just posting three quotes that intrigued me and made me think. And I’m not going to feel bad about it because every time I’ve posted three quotes for My Tuesday Three someone has said that one or more of the quotes are exactly what they needed that day.

The first quote I want to share is:

You know how it is — you say the same words, yet they mean different things to those hearing them. you offer the same touch, yet it yields different results in different lives. Some people soak up your touch; others wipe it off. You might look at these situations and get discouraged: “Fine! I just won’t do anything nice for anyone!” Yet look back at the example of Jesus.” — Amy Nappa

I don’t know about you, but I could so relate to this quote. I desire to have Christ live in me and to treat others with compassion, forgiveness, and love. But some people just don’t seem to respond to such kindness. Instead, they cling to their pride and arrogance. But it is at such times that I am reminded of Jesus’ example of One who loved, forgave, and offered compassion anyway. I am reminded of my post from last February titled “Appreciation Not Required.” This would have been a perfect quote to go with it.

The second quote I want to share is:

When purity is reduced to legalism, our hearts are no longer free; they are focused more on maintaining rituals and customs than on living out a genuine character change. — David Edwards

I love this quote. It is so true that purity is so much more than legalistically following a set of rules. Purity is something that is created in the heart of the believer by the Holy Spirit. It’s not something we gain by our own efforts. It stems from a heart devoted in love to God; it grows from a simple belief in Jesus as Savior. I am reminded of a post I wrote in January titled “The Work of God Is to Believe.” This would have been a perfect quote to go with it.

The third quote I want to share is:

“The Word became flesh,” John said … He was touchable, approachable, reachable. And, what’s more, he was ordinary. If he were here today you probably wouldn’t notice him as he walked through a shopping mall. He wouldn’t turn heads by the clothes he wore or the jewelry he flashed. “Just call me Jesus,” you can almost hear him say. — Max Lucado

This is the perfect quote for this time of year, as we approach the celebration of the Word made flesh, Emmanuel, God with us. I think Max is right that we might not even notice Jesus because He wouldn’t be all flashy and showy. He’d probably be hanging out with the wrong people. But if we stopped to take notice, I believe we would have been drawn to Him because of His kindness, compassion, and love, because of His desire to know us. These aren’t the traits that the world teaches us to look for in our leaders, but they the traits of the Savior. I am reminded of a post I wrote in August titled “Would You Recognize Jesus?” This would have been a great quote to go with it.

It’s funny how I got to the end of this post and I see a connection among these three random quotes that I chose from my Quotemeal emails in my inbox. The connection is the Holy Spirit − He reminds me to follow the example of Jesus to love anyway; He is the source of purity within the hearts of believers; and it is His work in the womb of a young virgin from Nazareth that made Emmanuel a reality.

Plus, who do you think reminded me of previous posts I had written that related to these quotes? This is just another example of how the Holy Spirit can fill a whole page with words when I sit down to the computer with absolutely nothing to write. Praise be to God.

I had planned to do more book reviews this year, because I have so many great Christian books in my collection that I would love to share with all of you. Since it’s been a while since I wrote a book review, I decided it was time to take a look at the old book shelves and see what to share today.

I decided on “Every Day Deserves a Chance” by Max Lucado. I selected this book for our church Women’s Retreat several years ago, and it was a big hit. I still have one of the rocks that one of our retreat volunteers made for this retreat sitting next to my computer monitor at work. On one side of the rock she wrote “GOD” and on the other side she wrote each attendee’s name in lower case letters (so mine says “linda”). The rock was designed to always remind us of what we learned from this study.

One of the great things about this book is that it does include a Discussion Guide in the back with questions that can be used in a small group setting. But the book can also be used for personal reading.

There are three main sections of the book, which correspond with the letters “G” for grace, “O” for oversight, and “D” for direction.

Saturate Your Day in His Grace

Entrust Your Day to His Oversight

Accept His Direction

One of my favorite chapters is titled “Gratitude for Ungrateful Days.” The chapter begins with an excerpt from the diary of a (very grateful) dog. Throughout the day, each entry in the dog’s diary says “Oh boy, the _______ — my favorite.” No matter what’s in the blank, whether it be the kids, a car ride, a nap, or dog food, the dog is grateful and excited. Following this is an excerpt from the diary of a (very ungrateful) cat:

Day 283 of my captivity. My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat while I’m forced to eat dry cereal. I’m sustained by the hope of escape and the mild satisfaction I derive from ruining a few pieces of furniture. Tomorrow I may eat another houseplant. Lucado pg. 23-24.

This complaining continues for another half a page and is quite amusing. But what’s the point, you might ask? The point comes in the next paragraph:

The day of a dog. The day of a cat. One content, the other conniving. One at peace, the other at war. One grateful, the other grumpy. Same house. Same circumstances. Same master. Yet two entirely different attitudes. Lucado pg. 24.

The lesson to be learned is that whether you have an attitude of gratitude for the life God has given you, or live grumpy, ungrateful, and at war with God, is up to you. We often can’t change our circumstances, but we can change our attitude about them. And God notices a grateful heart.

This wonderful little book is filled with anecdotes and stories such as this one that help to make a point. It is also filled with scripture to support his points and to help us be more grateful and forgiving, to help us have less anxiety and fear, to help us see God’s purpose and direction for our lives. This small book is only 157 pages, including the Discussion Guide, but it is packed with godly wisdom highlighted with wonderful stories (both contemporary and Biblical) that speak directly to the circumstances and heart of every person.

Whether you are planning a retreat or just need something to read to lift your spirit, I highly recommend this book.